Rusty Young, Pedal steel player for the band Poco died Wednesday at 75. RIP>
https://www.rollingstone.com/music/m...-obit-1156578/
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Rusty Young, Pedal steel player for the band Poco died Wednesday at 75. RIP>
https://www.rollingstone.com/music/m...-obit-1156578/
Aw, geez! :( Another good one gone. I only ever saw Poco once, and it was way back when on the "Deliverin'" tour. Great show. I really liked their first few albums, and Rusty was a big part of them. I kind of drifted away for a bit, then back with a bang on "A Good Feeling To Know." He was the only member of the band to be with them the whole while. As the article says, he was a true innovator on the pedal steel, one of the first if not THE first to really rock it. He will be missed.
On a side note, Paul Cotton, who joined the band later, has been living here for several years, and playing pretty regularly. Just like any other bar band, though with some better material, and not many Jimmy Buffett songs. ;) A couple of my friends are in the band, so I've gotten to know him a bit. One time I got a call from someone in the band, wondering if I could lend him a mandolin for a couple of songs. Ummm ... no. I mean, that's my baby, you know? Borrow a mandolinist for a couple songs, OK. ;) But otherwise ... They found one some other way. :whistling:
This is really sad news, RIP. A lot of pedal steel players of a certain age got into the instrument because of Rusty and Buddy Cage (New Riders), who passed away a little over a year ago. Long thread about Rusty https://bb.steelguitarforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=369054
quote (as of a few years ago) "only group member to have played at every single live concert and on every Poco recording since 1968."
I saw Rusty at the Syria Mosque in Pittsburgh, probably 1974. He was playing a steel guitar built to fit with a strap around his neck and the strings tilted forward to the audience, I heard him call it “The Bear”, played with a ton of gain for almost a Marshall amp sound. What an incredible evening!
Richard: That was a Melobar, apparently pretty popular at one time but I've never seen one played since I've been playing steels. Recently, he was playing a Carter which looks just like mine, but darned if i can get mine to sound like his.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melobar_guitar
I went to the wiki to see what a Melobar looks like, and they don't have a photo. If you find you have a little time on your hands, and want to post a good representative photo of yours, please do. Le Monde de Melobar will be appreciative, I'm sure. If you're not a wiki member, it's easy enough to join. I'd offer to do it myself, but I have had trouble uploading photos I don't have the rights to. Posting one's own work should be easy.
There is one other thread hereabouts devoted to the Melobar. It has a most appropriate title: What the heck is this? There you will find a link to a blog devoted to the thang. Have fun!
Mosrite Melobar being played:
Apparently a 10-string converted down to a 6-string. Don't know what Young played.
I'll look into upload a pic but here's one you can buy
https://www.guitarcenter.com/Used/In...t-Lap-Steel.gc
for posterity: https://web.archive.org/web/20210423...t-Lap-Steel.gc
also the builder is still active: https://bb.steelguitarforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=342572
Hitchhiked from Albany to Providence RI to see the Kinks with Poco as the warm-up act. My roommate wanted to see the Kinks, I went along for the party. His brother was in med school at Brown so ... What the heck! This was 1975 after all.
A strange mix, the Kinks and Poco. Well I really enjoyed Poco, not so much the Kinks. And the rest of my time in Providence, well its still a faded memory.
Loved Poco! Got to see them live, too, Journeybear. I loved that era— Flying Burrito Bros, Jackson Browne, Buffalo Springfield, NGDB, etc. RIP Rusty. Thanks for letting us know.
Reminds of a show I wish I'd gone to, also The Kinks as headliner. It was 1974, in Milwaukee, 75 miles from where I was going to school. Some friends were going and had a ticket. I liked The Kinks, but I pretty much said "Kinks, Schminks." When they got back, and told me that Little Feat had opened, I about fell over. :disbelief: I loved them, and that was their peak time. But the ticket just said The Kinks, not the opener. I sometimes refer to this as the best show I never went to. :crying:Quote:
Originally Posted by Bob Gnann
Buffalo Springfield are right near the top of bands I wish I'd seen. My brother flew out to their reunion show at the Bridge School Benefit, in 2010. He said it was excellent; I'm sure it was. I've seen Neil Young a few times, Richie Furay in Poco that one time, but never Stills. Oh well!Quote:
Originally Posted by lflngpicker
Journeybear, I enjoyed Richie Furay a lot live, and Stills came through Riverside several years ago. Quite a guitarist!
Hi Gtani7–Many thanks for the info on the Melobar! I’m guessing the name explains why Rusty called it “The Bear”. Found this link to a sale with pics of Rusty playing one: https://bb.steelguitarforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=328922
—Richard
Richard: I'm guessing the playing position is too close to the body, if you look at standup steels that people are playing today, the Asher and Larkin Poe's Lovell's Ricky (which i think is a Rickenbacher).
Journeybear: The Kinks at the Oriental theater? Darn, I could've walked to that show, tho I'm not sure my parents would've let me go.
https://www.concertarchives.org/band...#concert-table
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Back to Rusty, a lot of people have listened to his sessions without knowing it was him, songs by Ace, 3 Dog Night, James Gang, looong list: https://bb.steelguitarforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=369278
Thanks! My usual resources weren't helping me find the show. Now I've got a new resource. ;)Quote:
Originally Posted by gtani7